Pennsylvania Marriage Equality Ruling Final

Yesterday was the final day to file an appeal of the May 20th ruling that overturned Pennsylvania’s ban on same-sex marriage. Just for laughs, here’s the last ditch press release from Diane Gramley, the head of the state affiliate of the American Family Association: Pennsylvanians who understand what real marriage is are outraged that an unelected, activist judge has twisted the Constitution into something unrecognizable. They know Governor Corbett still has time to do the right thing and appeal this decision. It is critical that he act to protect the families — the children — of Pennsylvania from this decision.

Regarding speculation about what the future might or might not hold, only time will tell. We should all live so long as to have that much time. Best of luck guaranteeing that!

However, in this very real meanwhile in which we actually live, a new dark cloud now hovers over our marriage – perhaps to be dispelled someday, or never.

This cruel uncertainty is caused by the ruling by the U. S. Supreme Court in June 2013, when they failed in their constitutional responsibilities to strike down all state bans of our legal marriage.

When these many appeals finally reach the U. S. Supreme Court in years hence, that court could fail as miserably yet again. Until that day, or for the rest of our lives, our currently-legal marriage in Pennsylvania could vanish with the stroke of a federal judge’s pen.

While we celebrate the decision not to appeal Judge Jones’ ruling, we still have an uphill battle to end legal discrimination in PA for all public accommodations, including housing, employment, education, et. al. Organizations such as ME4PA, Keystone Progress and Equality PA are fighting to win on that issue and plenty of others.